Seagulls and Rape Alarms
by escarr15
Summary: Castle's new book leads him and Beckett to Brighton, England. As usual, their vacation does not go quite as planned. Early S6. Title from a friend's summary of a conversation I had with a mutual friend about me thinking seagulls were burglars and only having a rape alarm as a weapon. Rated T for mild sex references.
1. Chapter 1

The clock in the precinct strikes 5. Beckett looks up and sees Gates standing in the doorway of her office, watching. Beckett had been ready for a good hour or so, paperwork filed and cases closed, but hadn't brought herself to leave until the arranged time. Now it is 5 o'clock and she doesn't need another lecture from Gates over taking vacation days.

"I'll see you all next week then." Beckett calls to the rest of the office as she stands up, bag ready in her hand. Ryan and Esposito stand, as if this is a big farewell, and maybe, in a way, it is. She'd shied away from taking any vacation for so long that Gates had practically forced her to take a break. When Castle had mentioned the call from his publisher about the last minute booking in England Beckett had found herself in the captain's office and, at Gates' request, hastily agreed to accompany her partner. Castle was overjoyed, of course, but she was apprehensive about their extended weekend in Europe.

"Have a great time!" Ryan says, Espo nodding at his side. At least the homicide department was in safe hands during her absence.

"Thanks guys." Beckett smiles and turns to Gates.

"Get some rest out there," she says, placing a supportive hand on Beckett's arm. "You deserve it."

"Thank you, sir," Beckett replies warmly. "See you on Wednesday." The elevator doors open and, as some uniformed officers step out, she steps in, turning to give a final wave to her colleagues and friends. The doors close and it feels like she's waving goodbye to her life.

* * *

The clock on his dashboard flicks to 17:00 as Castle pulls up outside the 12th. Traffic is fairly quiet and for once there is a parking space where he can wait for Beckett without being honked at by squad cars. He is already impatient, although he knows she will have waited until the final possible moment to leave her desk.

He has been looking forward to this trip since his publisher phoned him two weeks earlier. His anticipation has been almost unbearable since Gates gave Beckett permission to accompany him. His partner was less than pleased when she emerged from that meeting: If there's one thing she loves more than him it's her job, and vacation days are her arch nemesis. He thinks of the multiple book tour weekends she's declined and knows that Gates must have some reason for agreeing that Beckett should come with him to Europe.

Once he'd explained how much time they'd have to themselves and the scorching weather forecast, his fiancée had warmed to the idea and now they have almost six days stretching out in front of them. What made the trip even more enticing was that his publishers had agreed to pay for both of them with no expense spared.

He checks his phone. 5:05. He looks to the entrance of the precinct and sees Kate descending the steps, bag in hand. He jumps out of the car, causing a cab to swerve, and opens the trunk for her. Their suitcases are already inside and he takes her bag, fitting it between the cases. He jogs round to the passenger side and opens the door for his beautiful fiancée.

"Ready?" he asks, kissing her lightly on the cheek.

"Babe, of course." she replies, giving him a wry smile as he draws her into an embrace. They hold each other close for a lingering moment and then he kisses her on the forehead as they draw apart. She lowers herself into the passenger seat and he slams the door, grateful to be allowed to drive for once. He checks the traffic this time and climbs into the driving seat beside her. He grins as he starts the ignition and Beckett smiles back.

"Let's go have a holiday!" he whoops, and they speed towards the airport.


	2. Chapter 2

Beckett's head lulls as Castle drives towards the airport, his excitable voice filling the car with the plans for the extended weekend ahead. Not realising her tiredness, she only catches portions of Castle's monologue and since she'd heard it all before multiple times he didn't seem to mind about her lack of response.

Despite her initial resistance and apparent disinterest, she was truly excited for the trip. It was a big opportunity for Castle and had come at such short notice that his publishers had pulled out all the stops to ensure he was on board. For such a small country the British market for crime was huge and she knew Castle wanted to break into it. However since they got together they both hated his trips to Europe and being apart. Although she loathed beaing away from work she was glad they could enjoy a trip together for once.

It had all come about very oddly. Castle had been given a last minute slot at the Brighton Crime Festival. Apparently the author who had organised the event, Peter James, also shadowed the police, although Beckett doubted that he was as annoying to them as Castle was to her. Murders didn't come up very often in Brighton so when there was a murder in neighbouring Lewes three weeks ago James was naturally on the scene. And then there were two more murders and they were solidly looking for a serial killer and so, instead of appearing at Crime Fest, James wanted to follow the case closely. As a replacement Castle had many of the organiser's attributes: experience of the police; maturity as a writer; and a passion for crime. Not being local was a minor issue and Castle was not only prepared to travel but had no committments for this weekend. His publishers called him at the precinct and Gates saw it as a perfect opportunity to give Beckett a break too.

Now that she's in the car Beckett cannot help but agree. Her vacations days have been filled with disaster and since the Hamptons she's been relunctant to take them, especially since Montgomery made a note on her file after the LA debacle and so Gates tends to check up on her if she disappears during an active case. In hindsight it probably wasn't a coincidence that Gates wanted her to go to England, a country where she has no jurisdiction whatsoever.

Castle had grown silent by now, registering Beckett's nodded head and tired eyes. Moreover he needed to concentrate on the complicated lane structure of JFK International: a maze of junctions that lead drivers to departures, arrivals, drop off, pick up, car parks and the hotel. Beckett resists the temptation to instruct him on where to go, especially after being so quiet on the journey from the precinct. To her surprise he heads not towards the car park but to the departures drop off. She opens her mouth to correct him but then they round the corner and she spots a familiar face.

"Alexis?" she exclaims, winding the window down for her to hear, "What are you doing here?" Surely Castle wasn't bringing his daughter with them? She loves Alexis but having her company on a romantic weekend with her fiancé is far from ideal.

"Dad said I could borrow the car if I drove it back from here." Alexis replies matter-of-factly. Beckett raises an eyebrow quizzically at Castle, not quite believing he'd lend his precious car to his, albeit very sensible, daughter.

"Oh yeah," he explains, "She's taking mother to the Hamptons and I figured it'd be safer than long term parking." Alexis smiles at him and he jumps out, passing the keys to her and opening the door for Beckett.

She mutters a thank you and turns her attention to unloading the bags. Alexis turns to her. "It's not the Ferrari after all" she says and Beckett has to laugh. She smiles at her stepdaughter-to-be.

"Look after his car and I'll look after him." Alexis smiles back gratefully and slams the passenger door. Castle appears at Beckett's side.

"Have a great trip!" Alexis says as she disappears into the driving seat. They wave goodbye to her and then they are alone with their luggage. Castle produces two plane tickets.

"Your vacation awaits!" Castle announces, wrapping his arm around Beckett's waist and leading her into departures, bags in tow.


	3. Chapter 3

Check-in and security passed uneventfully, as did the flight. Beckett was much happier flying in the luxury of first class, away from the cramped state of economy, and the express departure service meant they had little time hanging around waiting for their gate number in the terminal. The complimentary champagne on board only added to her tiredness and she fell into a fitful sleep that lasted for the majority of the seven and a half hour flight. In her occasional waking moments she looks across her shoulder at the dozing man next to her and smiles. More than five days alone with the man she is going to marry looks like bliss.

They were both woken sharply as the plane touched down at Gatwick Airport. It was the middle of the night in New York but in England the sun was already rising and they awoke to dazzling sunlight streaming into the cabin.

"Morning," Beckett says groggily to her husband to be.

"Good morning," he replies with a warm smile, "You ready to get out of here?" There's nothing she'd rather do at this moment and she nods. First class may be luxurious but over seven hours of being stuck in her seat makes her eager to stretch her legs. Castle is already standing and stretches out a hand to help her up. She gratefully accepts it and levers herself out of the chair, making sure not to bump her head on the low ceiling of the plane. She really should have worn flats.

She moves into the aisle to let Castle out and he retrieves their hand luggage from under their seats. He swings one bag over each shoulder and they walk out towards the terminal hand in hand, thanking the cabin crew as they leave.

* * *

The corridors and escalators seem endless and there's a constant flow of people heading towards arrivals. The airport appears to be sponsored by HSBC and Beckett makes a mental note of their offerings in case Castle's bank of choice is robbed again.

There is finally a break in the corridors as they reach passport control and they follow the channel for non-EU citizens. Castle's publishers had rushed through their visa applications and Fed-Exed them over the previous morning. He passes Beckett her bag and fishes his own passport out from his hand luggage. She does the same and they clutch their extensive paperwork as they wind through the relatively short queue. Castle wraps his arm around his fiancée's waist and she smiles up at him, both blissfully ignorant of the people in front and behind them.

The queue moves relatively quickly and soon they are being called to the border control desk. "Mr Castle," the border official says curtly, after inspecting his visa. "What is the purpose of your visit to the UK?"

"My book," Castle replies, "My publishers had a last minute promotion opportunity in Brighton and arranged for me and my fiancée to mix it in with our vacation." He gestures to Beckett waiting behind the yellow line.

"Sir, are you being paid to come?" Castle feels uneasy: he knows immigration controls had been tightened and suddenly realises the ambiguity with his holiday visa.

"Umm, no," Castle hesitates, "It's a low budget thing, strictly expenses. Everything was sorted by my publishers"

The official nods, noting Castle's words on his computer. "And you leave when?"

"Tuesday. The flight is booked and my partner has a shift on Wednesday."

The official gestures for Beckett to join Castle at the desk. She gives her fiancé a questioning look and hands her passport over.

"Ma'am, when is your return flight to America?"

"Err, Tuesday," Beckett replies. She hated to admit she'd been eavesdropping but she is sure Castle was just asked the same question. "I have work on Wednesday. Detective, NYPD." She's anticipating the next question from the grave official.

On hearing her job title the border official stiffens. "That's all fine, just have to check these things when visas are arranged so close to departure." He flashes them a nervous smile and stamps both passports. "Have a nice trip."

Castle murmurs a thanks to the official and he and Beckett walk out into the minute waiting area before baggage reclaim.

"Belt 12 apparently," Beckett reads from the board. The queue at passport control had delayed them enough that bags were already coming through as they walked down the stairs. Rather unsensibly they had chosen to bring neutral coloured cases - one black and one beige - but being first class their bags appeared almost as soon as they reached the carousel. Keen to show off his strength, Castle lifted each case off swiftly with one hand and refused the idea of a luggage trolley, wheeling them both through customs himself, leaving Kate to follow with the hand luggage. None of the customs officers felt the need to stop them and suddenly they were through the arrivals doors, past WHSmith and worlddutyfree and into the melee of families and taxi drivers.

Their driver waited at the end of the barrier with a sign reading 'CASTLE/BECKETT'. It was a nice touch from the publishers to include both names Beckett thought. Castle exchanges a few pleasantries with the driver, who hastily takes the suitcases from him and beckoned for them to follow. The taxi is parked just outside the terminal, surrounded by irate men in fluorescent jackets arguing about his right to park there. The driver retrieves a sheet of paper from his pocket and points vigorously at it. Neither Castle nor Beckett knew what it said but it seems to placate the angry men and the driver busies himself with fitting the suitcases in the trunk.

"Hilton Hotel, Brighton?" The driver asks, opening the back door of the taxi for them. Beckett looks to Castle and slides in.

"Yep, that's right," Castle replies as he clambers in next to her. The driver slams the door and Castle beams at Beckett as the driver readies himself to drive off.


	4. Chapter 4

Beckett finds herself nodding off almost as soon as they reach the motorway. She is glad of the lack of plans for the day, despite her determination not to get jet-lagged. It's not the flight or the time difference, she tells herself – it's the job. Every time she gets a day off she's increasingly tried to spend time with Castle but she often finds herself waking up on his sofa and apologising. He says he doesn't mind but she knows he'd much rather be sleeping with her than watching her sleep. Ever since her failure in DC she has thrown herself into being the best detective possible, as if she has to prove that Gates was right to reinstate her. Or maybe it is the distraction from her mother's case that drives her: she desperately wants to solve it but knows that without leads it would just consume her.

She surfaces properly just before the turning for Burgess Hill and wakes to see Castle's gaze firmly fixed on her.

"Hey babe," she says slowly, feeling the fatigue after hours of broken sleep.

"Good morning beautiful," he says, taking her hand. They sit there smiling at each other until Beckett laughs.

"Look at that!" she says, pointing at the Route 23 Diner on the side of the road, "Bet that's not American."

"It's named after the road we're on, the A23," the driver says, "I've never stopped there." If the driver had anything more to add neither of them heard it. Beckett fell onto Castle's shoulder in her laughter and her head turns to look up to him. She feels his lips on hers and suddenly they are making out in the back of the taxi like lovesick teenagers. Being together, just as themselves, they realise this has not been possible for so long that they are overcome by desire. Out of the corner of his eye Castle sees a sign for Brighton and hopes that their destination is not far off.

It feels like an age but fifteen minutes later the taxi pulls up outside the Hilton Hotel. A doorman opens the car door for them and the driver is waiting by the trunk with their bags. Beckett blushes but if the driver has any embarrassment over their behaviour he doesn't show it. Castle slips him a ten pound note a generous tip and they climb the stairs together, their bags having been taken by the attentive doorman.

Beckett can hardly bear the wait at check-in and barely notices the grandeur of the foyer, her eyes instead focused on her fiancé sorting out their paperwork at the reception desk. He turns to her, room keys in hand, and leads her to the elevator, accompanied by the concierge carrying their bags. It is only a short ride to the second floor and she feels like she is floating as they walk to their room. The concierge lets them in and then swiftly leaves, nodding to them both.

The door clicks closed. Castle sweeps Beckett up in his arms and they fall into bed together, giggling over their new found freedom. For those precious moments it is as if they are the only two people in the world.


End file.
